Outdoor temperature reset control method for boiler using external network

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a method for the compensation control of heating temperature in accordance with the outdoor temperature and for preventing icicles from being formed on an exhaust pipe, wherein the outdoor temperature is received from an integration server without the need for having a separate outdoor temperature sensor installed, and a system is constructed so as to be capable of communicating between a room controller to which a wireless communication module is mounted and the integration server.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a method for controlling a boiler system in accordance with the outdoor temperature supplied from an external network, and more specifically to a compensation control method of the boiler according to an outdoor temperature using the external network, which receives the outdoor temperature information from an integration server without needing to install a separate outdoor temperature sensor by establishing a system capable of communicating between a room controller to which a wireless communication module is mounted and an integration server, so as to carry out compensation control of the set temperature according to the outdoor temperature in order to control the amount of heat supplied and to prevent icicles from forming on an exhaust pipe even at below zero weather.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Ondol heating can be largely classified into local heating system, district heating system and central heating system. For Ondol heating, heat gain and heat loss of the building must be equal for an ideal control to take place. The heat gain and heat loss processes are dynamic processes which are constantly changed due to outdoor temperature, solar radiation, infiltration, internal heat generation, or the like, thus there is a need to control the amount of heat supplied indoors.

For the local heating system, temperature of the heating water supply is supplied by setting different seasonal criteria, with it generally being 60-80° C. for winter. Although the effect of the seasonal outdoor temperature is considered, it does not take into account the effect of the dynamic range of the outdoor temperature on the temperature setting of the heating water supply, in the same season. Further, it does not consider day and night, southern and northern, building characteristics (response characteristics to an outdoor temperature), etc., resulting in many problematic instances such as overheating phenomenon and energy loss.

In order to solve such a problem, the existing public Patent No. 10-1109648 discloses an outdoor temperature peristaltic flow control device having a supply line through which hot water is supplied; a hot water pipeline that is branched to each room from the supply line so that the latent heat of the hot water is heat exchanged with each room; a return water line connected to each hot water pipeline through which heat exchanged hot water is returned; an outdoor temperature sensor provided to measure the outdoor air temperature; a controller outputting a control signal in accordance with the outdoor temperature received from the outdoor temperature sensor; and a variable flow valve installed on the supply line or the return line, and which receives the control signal from the controller to control the flow of the hot water flowing inside the pipe.

Meanwhile, generally for a boiler, the air introduced from outside through an air supply pipe is supplied to a burner together with fuel using an air blower, and the exhaust gas generated by combustion at the burner is heat exchanged with the heating water transferred from a heat exchanger via a circulation pump, then released through the exhaust pipe into the atmosphere outside the boiler.

There is a considerable amount of moisture (H₂O) contained in the exhaust gas, however since the temperature of the exhaust gas is typically over 100 degrees the moisture contained in the exhaust gas cannot be condensed and is discharged as vapor through the exhaust pipe.

However, if the outdoor temperature is very low such as during winter, temperature of the exhaust pipe terminal is greatly decreased and thereby the exhaust gas can be below the dew point temperature (generally 40-55 degrees, the temperature at which water vapor contained in the exhaust gas starts to condense). In this case, water vapor is condensed in the exhaust pipe terminal.

In this case, during winter when the outdoor temperature is below zero, the vapor condensed at the exhaust pipe terminal freezes to form icicles. These icicles are not only aesthetically unpleasing but also results in human and material damages should the icicles fall from an upper floor of a high-rise building.

In order to solve such a problem, the existing registered Korean Patent No. 10-0805551 discloses a method of preventing condensation of a boiler exhaust pipe comprising the steps of operating the boiler to carry out combustion; determining whether or not the outdoor temperature measured by the outdoor temperature sensor is below the preset temperature; switching the three-way valve to the hot water position if the measured outdoor temperature is below the set temperature; extinguishing the burner if the heating water pipe temperature reaches the preset temperature; and operating the circulation pump and the air blower to carry out heat exchange at the main heat exchanger, and discharging the hot air through the exhaust pipe.

The aforementioned prior arts have inconveniences such as the fact that both require attaching a separate outdoor temperature sensing sensor on the outer wall or the air inlet of the boiler and connecting it to the boiler controller.

PRIOR ART LITERATURE Patent Literature

(Patent Literature 1) Korean Patent No. 10-1109648

(Patent Literature 2) Korean Patent No. 10-0805551

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION Technical Problem

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a compensation control method of a boiler according to an outdoor temperature using an external network, which establishes a system providing real-time outdoor temperature of the relevant area by datafying user's address information and outdoor temperature information at the integration server without having to equip a separate outdoor temperature sensor.

Technical Solution

The compensation control method of a boiler according to an outdoor temperature using an external network according to the present invention for solving the above technical problem is characterized by comprising the steps of

(a) registering a room controller by transmitting the unique number of a room controller having a wireless communication module mounted thereto to an integration server through a wireless router, performing an authentication step at the integration server and then storing the unique number to a database; (b) the user or installer accessing the integration server through a terminal to input location information corresponding to the unique number of the room controller to the database; (c) searching the integration server for the outdoor temperature information of the area where the room controller is installed and transmitting the outdoor temperature information to the room controller; (d) transmitting the outdoor temperature information received from the room controller to the boiler controller so as to perform compensation control of the boiler according to the outdoor temperature.

Preferably, the integration server may further comprise the step of identifying the location information of the room controller using the IP address of the wireless router and storing the location information of the room controller to the database.

In one embodiment, the compensation control of the boiler according to the outdoor temperature of the above step (d) can first include controlling the flow of the hot water supply by adjusting the opening degree of the variable flow valve according to the change in outdoor temperature.

Second, the temperature of the heating water supply can be controlled according to change in outdoor temperature using the variable constant (K-factor) value that is in accordance with a preset outdoor temperature.

Third, the three-way valve may be switched to the hot water position if the outdoor temperature is below zero so that the expansion tank can store thermal energy which can prevent freezing of the exhaust pipe.

Advantageous Effects

According to the present invention, it is unnecessary to install a separate outdoor temperature sensor since each boiler receives the outdoor temperature of the relevant area from an integration server through the IP address information or the address information entered by the user.

Further, heating quantity can be actively controlled according to change in outdoor temperature so as to prevent overheating or energy loss and to always perform ideal heating, and icicles can be prevented from forming on the exhaust pipe even at temperatures below zero so as to prevent human and material damages caused by falling icicles.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall system configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the outdoor temperature peristaltic flow control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an exhaust passage structure for preventing condensation at the exhaust pipe according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the set temperature of the heating water supply and the outdoor temperature as a change in K-factor value according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In order to fully understand the present invention an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiment of the present invention can be modified into various forms, and it should be understood that the scope of present invention is not limited to the embodiment whose detailed description is provided below. The following embodiment is given to provide a more detailed description of the preset invention to those skilled in the art. Therefore, shapes of the elements may be exaggerated in the drawings for a clearer understanding of the description. Identical or corresponding elements in each drawing are designated with same reference signs. In addition, description of known functions or configurations determined to hinder understanding of the invention is omitted.

Hereinafter, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The compensation control method of a boiler according to an outdoor temperature using an external network according to the present invention is largely divided into the steps of (a) registering a room controller (110) of a boiler (100) to an integrated server (130);

(b) transmitting outdoor temperature information from the integrated server (130) to the room controller (110); and

(c) performing compensation control at the boiler (100) according to the outdoor temperature, using the outdoor temperature information received from the room controller (110).

In examining the step of registering the room controller (110) to an integrated server, as shown in FIG. 1, the room controller installed in the house is equipped with a wireless communication module (111), thus wireless communication is possible, and a unique number is entered for each product.

Therefore, when the room controller (110) is connected to the wireless router (120) installed in the house the unique number is transmitted using wireless communication, and the wireless router receives the unique number and transmits it again to the integration server (130).

The integration server (130) is equipped with an authentication server (131) and a database (135) to perform the authentication step of analyzing the unique number received and determining whether or not it is correct, and stores the unique number to the database (135) after authentication is complete.

The step of transmitting the outdoor temperature information from the integration server (130) to the room controller (110) is possible by two methods.

The first method involves the user or the installer inputting the address information, in which the user or the installer accesses the integration server (130) through a terminal (140) such as a Smartphone, PC, and laptop to input the unique number, and then inputs the address information of the area where the room controller (110) is installed. The address information is stored in the database (135) together with the unique number. Afterwards, if the compensation control function according to an outdoor temperature is set at the room controller (110), the address information and the unique number of the room controller (110) is searched at the service server (132), which searches and updates the outdoor temperature of each area nationwide in real-time, to transmit real-time outdoor temperature information of the relevant area to the room controller (110) at the scheduled time.

The second method involves the user not inputting the address information, in which the integration server (130) extracts the IP address of the wireless router (120), which has performed wireless communication with the room controller (110), to identify approximate access area using Korea Network Information Center (kmic: http://), etc. and store the relevant location information to the database (135). The subsequent process of transmitting the outdoor temperature information to the room controller (110) is identical to above.

The room controller (110) which has received the outdoor temperature information in the previous step transmits the outdoor temperature information to the controller (101) of the boiler (100) through a wire communication method such as RS485 to perform compensation control in accordance with the outdoor temperature.

On the other hand, although the room controller (110) is stated above as an essential element during the process of transmitting the outdoor temperature information from the integration server (130) to the controller (101), the room controller (110) should be understood to include all devices, such as a panel part attached to the boiler which can transmit and receive outdoor temperature information in a similar method to above.

The compensation control according to the outdoor temperature has been proposed in various forms in the prior art. Hereinafter embodiments relating to the control method for improving energy efficiency by controlling the amount of heat supplied according to the outdoor temperature and the control method to prevent icicles from forming at the exhaust pipe when the outdoor temperature is below zero will be described.

First, it is possible to use both the flow control method and the method of controlling the temperature of the heating water supply in order to control the amount of heat supplied according to the outdoor temperature.

As shown in FIG. 2, the outdoor temperature peristaltic flow control device largely consists of a supply pipe (210), a hot water supply header (220), a hot water pipeline (230), a hot water return header (240), a return pipe (250) and a variable flow valve (260).

The hot water pipeline (230) is branched into each room from the hot water supply header (220) so that the latent heat of the hot water is heat exchanged with each room. The hot water is heat exchanged with the floor while it flows along the hot water pipeline (230), thereby heating the floor. Then, the hot water is cooled and returned through the hot water return header (240).

The controller (101) receives outdoor temperature information output by the room controller (110), and controls the variable flow valve (260) by outputting a control signal in accordance with the outdoor temperature.

The variable flow valve (260) is installed on the supply pipe (210) or the return pipe (250), and controls the flow of hot water flowing in the supply pipe (210) or the return pipe (250) upon receiving the control signal from the controller (101).

That is, when the outdoor temperature increases, the controller (101) controls the variable flow valve (260) to lower the flow of the hot water. However, since it supplies low flow, velocity of the hot water supply decreases leading to more than enough time for heat exchange and thereby heat efficiency increases.

On the other hand, in the method of controlling the temperature of the heating water supply according to the outdoor temperature, heating control is performed by the controller (101) receiving the outdoor temperature information output by the room controller (110) and determining the temperature of the heating water supply according to the variable constant (K-factor) that is in accordance with the preset outdoor temperature. Here, the heating water supply temperature that is determined is limited to maximum of 80 degrees, and the boiler operation is stopped if it is below 30 degrees. Thereby it is possible to reduce unnecessary heating energy consumption compared to conventional proportional control methods.

FIG. 4 is a commonly used graph showing the relationship between the set temperature of the heating water supply and the outdoor temperature according to the K-factor, and the K-factor is set to an initial value of 1 which is the value calculated by applying the compensation rate according to the outdoor temperature, but can be changed by the installer or the user.

Next, the control method for preventing icicle formation at the boiler exhaust pipe will be described with reference to FIG. 3.

First, combustion occurs by operating the boiler. When the outdoor temperature provided by the room controller (110) reaches 0° C., the temperature at which water condensed at the exhaust pipe (360) terminal can freeze, the controller (101) switches a three-way valve (390) to a hot water position to make the heating water flow to the hot water heat exchanger (380) side by blocking the heating water from flowing into the heating pipe (310) side where heat exchange with the floor occurs. In this case, combustion usually occurring at the burner (330) maintains its condition.

Here, the heating water circulates a closed circuit consisting of a circulation pump (350), a main heat exchanger (340), a three-way valve (390), a hot water heat exchanger (380) and an expansion tank (370) by the operation of the circulation pump (350). It is preferable to have a flow structure in which the heating water passes the expansion tank (370).

That is, the expansion tank (370) can typically store about 4-8 liters of heating water, and when combustion occurs with the three-way valve (390) switched to the hot water position the heating water circulating the closed circuit is heated, thereby the expansion tank (370) gains the function of storing thermal energy which can prevent freezing of the exhaust pipe (360) terminal.

The temperature of the heating water flowing inside the pipe is detected by the heating water temperature measurement sensor (not shown in the figure), and the controller (101) determines whether or not the measured temperature of the heating water reaches the preset temperature. If it has reached the preset temperature, the controller judges it as the temperature at which freezing of the exhaust pipe (360) terminal can be prevented and performs the extinguishing process.

Here, temperature of the heating water which is preset to perform extinguishing of the burner (330) is preferable to be the maximum temperature that can be raised by the heating water circulating closed circuit including the expansion tank (370) with the three-way valve (390) switched to the hot water position. Generally, it is possible to raise the temperature of the heating water inside the pipe to 80˜85 degrees, however the maximum temperature can be determined via an experiment if the flow structure through which the heating water circulates is specified.

When combustion is performed the circulation pump (350) and the air blower (320) operates, and the air transferred by the air blower (320) is changed to hot air by heat exchanging with the heating water heated at the main heat exchanger (340) in the above process. This air then prevents freezing of the exhaust pipe (360) terminal by being in contact with the vapor or condensed water droplets at the exhaust pipe (360) terminal when it is discharged outside through the exhaust pipe (360).

The above-described embodiment of the compensation control method of the boiler according to an outdoor temperature using an external network according to the present invention is merely an illustrative example. It will be understood by the skilled person in the art that various modifications and other similar embodiments based on the description provided can be made. Therefore, it is clear that the present invention is not limited to the referred embodiment. Accordingly, the technical scope of the invention to be protected must be based on the technical principles of the appended claims. Further, it must be understood that various modifications, equivalents and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the appended claims.

[Reference Numerals] 100: Boiler 101: Controller 110: Room Controller 111: Wireless Communication Module 120: Wireless Router 130: Integration Server 131: Authentication Server 132: Service Server 135: Database  140: Terminal 

1. A compensation control method of a boiler according to an outdoor temperature using an external network comprising the steps of: (a) registering a room controller by transmitting a unique number of a room controller having a wireless communication module mounted thereto to an integration server through a wireless router, performing an authentication step of the unique number at the integration server and then storing the unique number to a database; (b) a user or installer accessing the integration server through a terminal to input location information corresponding to the unique number of the room controller to the database; (c) searching the integration server for the outdoor temperature information of an area where the room controller is installed and transmitting the outdoor temperature information to the room controller; and (d) transmitting the outdoor temperature information received from the room controller to a boiler controller so as to perform compensation control of the boiler according to the outdoor temperature.
 2. The compensation control method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step of identifying location information of the room controller at the integration server using an IP address of the wireless router and storing the location information of the room controller to the database.
 3. The compensation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the compensation control of the boiler controls flow rate of a hot water supply by adjusting opening degree of a variable flow valve according to change in the outdoor temperature.
 4. The compensation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the compensation control of the boiler controls temperature of the heating water supply according to change in outdoor temperature using a variable constant (K-factor) value that is in accordance with a preset outdoor temperature.
 5. The compensation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the compensation control of the boiler switches a three-way valve to a hot water position when the outdoor temperature is below zero, so that an expansion tank can store thermal energy which can prevent freezing of an exhaust pipe. 